Strange Transmission

[jaymatt1978]

A friend of mine e-mailed me a heads up. It seems radio station in the Washington, DC area WFED-FM, Federal News Radio is simulcasting their broadcast on 152.5100. It's booming into Bergen County, I even get it on my portable scanners!! Everyone has heard the TV audio in the 450-451 and 455-456 range, but I never heard of FM transmissions rebroadcast their signals. Any ideas on what's going on???

 

[BNN987]

wow i am getting to too! amazing stuff... booming in fort lee at work..

 

[902]

This frequency is "owned" by FreePageCorporation/MattEdwards of Montauk, NY, KEA763, and was won at auction from the FCC. This company has a transmitter on this frequency at 811 Tenth Avenue in Manhattan.

While I have no knowledge of what they are doing, my best guess may be that they have "sold" or "leased" rights to use the frequency as a broadcast auxiliary in the New York City area perhaps with a direct broadcast implication.

edit: grammar

 

[902]

Talk about breaking news:

http://www.lpds.info/

This is a new "narrowcast" service approved by the FCC called:
Limited Program Distribution Service (read: 'I bought a VHF channel and I can't make it pay for itself')

You are listening to history in the making.

---
Edit: I'm waiting to see how long this business model of clear analog FM transmissions holds up before they go encrypted digital and make interested parties buy subscriptions for their programs of interest. This looks like a very 'on the cheap' start-up.

 

[Joseph11]

EDIT: Nevermind.

 

[n2pqq]

Good signal in upstate New York Orange county .

 

[Skypilot007]

Thats very ironic. When I was a kid I bought an old RCA crystal scanner at a yard sale. It had a couple of VHF crystals in it. One of them was 152.510. I used to hear phone calls on that frequency all day long. And on other near by frequencies when I got a programmable scanner. There would be periods of long tones broadcasts and then a phone call. It was something to listen too when you're 7 years old. I'll give it a listen a little later to see if I can hear it down here.

 

[Moose]

Just getting an open carrier right now in Union County, NJ 7:30am.

 

[N_Jay]

Thats very ironic. When I was a kid I bought an old RCA crystal scanner at a yard sale. It had a couple of VHF crystals in it. One of them was 152.510. I used to hear phone calls on that frequency all day long. And on other near by frequencies when I got a programmable scanner. There would be periods of long tones broadcasts and then a phone call. It was something to listen too when you're 7 years old. I'll give it a listen a little later to see if I can hear it down here.

That is because those are old Part 22 IMTS channels.

 

[902]

They are probably still using the same Motorola IMTS transmitter you used to listen to on that crystal scanner.

 

[Tech792]

Its solid here in Monmouth county

 

[N_Jay]

They are probably still using the same Motorola IMTS transmitter you used to listen to on that crystal scanner.

I would doubt that, as the IMTS gear was probably shut down and scrapped long ago.

 

[Analogrules]

Heard them last night also from Union County, loud and clear! Wonder how long they'll stay on the air for.

 

[902]

I would doubt that, as the IMTS gear was probably shut down and scrapped long ago.

You'd be surprised. The place on FreePageCorporation's license was a Long Lines center converted over from microwave to fiber back then, so there was lots of floor space. Wouldn't be surprised if they just left them there (like they did with everything else). I'd just about bet this company just bought the assets along with the license and brokered a deal to use the site. Aside from the site rental costs, the price would have been right.

I used to work in the Other Mobile Systems group (a/k/a, Obsolete Mobile Systems) that kept this system going until about 1990, until NYNEX Paging Co. (who OMS reported to) was sold to PageAmerica. Despite cellular coverage even back then, NYNEX Mobile kept this system on the air until about 1991 or so. The boss had a Motorola Pulsar boat anchor in his car to use, and his voice was the recorded "New York Mobile." We also did the New York Harbor (plus Upstate - that was my stuff travelling between Plattsburgh, Utica and Newark, NY) maritime stuff and air-to-ground.

At the time, there were probably 8 MSY vintage Motorola IMTS transmitters up there. I don't think they were Micors. If I remember correctly (and I'm a guy who has trouble remembering what he just ate for lunch), the receivers were at the telephone company building on Varrick St. They were all shipped to Sunnyside, Queens, just up the street from the FDNY central repair shop where the switch was. The UHF system had receivers on top of Empire and then transmitters out of Kew Gardens in Queens. There were remnants of the old 35/ 43 MHz MTS system - the receivers were in Staten Island near Todt Hill and transmitters were on Varrick St. That was used until the early 80's and taken down, I think, in 1982 or 3. Word was you could use that system from Philadelphia to just about Boston.

That particular site also had the 146.67 Telephone Pioneers repeater on it. I built that repeater in 1989 out of a Motorola MSF receiver and a Quintron QT-250B VHF transmitter that was surplussed from 152.84. Last time I came back to visit, I couldn't key it. Guess it came down.

 

[N_Jay]

You'd be surprised. The place on FreePageCorporation's license was a Long Lines center converted over from microwave to fiber back then, so there was lots of floor space. Wouldn't be surprised if they just left them there (like they did with everything else). I'd just about bet this company just bought the assets along with the license and brokered a deal to use the site. Aside from the site rental costs, the price would have been right.

I used to work in the Other Mobile Systems group (a/k/a, Obsolete Mobile Systems) that kept this system going until about 1990, until NYNEX Paging Co. (who OMS reported to) was sold to PageAmerica. Despite cellular coverage even back then, NYNEX Mobile kept this system on the air until about 1991 or so. The boss had a Motorola Pulsar boat anchor in his car to use, and his voice was the recorded "New York Mobile." We also did the New York Harbor (plus Upstate - that was my stuff travelling between Plattsburgh, Utica and Newark, NY) maritime stuff and air-to-ground.

At the time, there were probably 8 MSY vintage Motorola IMTS transmitters up there. I don't think they were Micors. If I remember correctly (and I'm a guy who has trouble remembering what he just ate for lunch), the receivers were at the telephone company building on Varrick St. They were all shipped to Sunnyside, Queens, just up the street from the FDNY central repair shop where the switch was. The UHF system had receivers on top of Empire and then transmitters out of Kew Gardens in Queens. There were remnants of the old 35/ 43 MHz MTS system - the receivers were in Staten Island near Todt Hill and transmitters were on Varrick St. That was used until the early 80's and taken down, I think, in 1982 or 3. Word was you could use that system from Philadelphia to just about Boston.

That particular site also had the 146.67 Telephone Pioneers repeater on it. I built that repeater in 1989 out of a Motorola MSF receiver and a Quintron QT-250B VHF transmitter that was surplussed from 152.84. Last time I came back to visit, I couldn't key it. Guess it came down.

All the history.

Yes, MSY, was Motrac/Motran vintage (Forget which one).

I have heard the tubes have become unobtainable, but who knows, under regulation the phone company may have stockpiled a 100 years worth.